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‘IT WAS THE PERFECT PASS FROM WONDER’

By Sibongiseni Zondi | 2018-05-16

SOCCER - MBABANE Swallows talisman Felix ‘Fela’ Badenhorst praised teammate Wonder ‘Samba Jive’ Nhleko for teeing him up for the side’s goal in the 1-0 win over Angolan side Primeiro de Agosto in the CAF Champions League yesterday at Mavuso Sports Centre.

Badenhorst latched on to a well weighted Nhleko pass to score the match winner in the 60th minute as Swallows recorded their first ever win in the Champions League group stages. That goal took Badenhorst’s tally in this season’s Champions League to four, putting him among the leading goalscorers in the competition.

Interviewed after the match, Badenhorst praised Nhleko for teeing him up well.

“I felt the connection with the ball when I hit it. It was the perfect pass from Wonder, well weighted so I had to connect like we always do at training. It’s too early for me to start thinking about the top scorer prize; the important thing is what we achieve as a group, no matter who scores.

For now I’m leading but it doesn’t mean that it’s about me, it’s about the team,” Badenhorst said.

Meanwhile, Swallows coach Thabo ‘Koki’ Vilakati reserved special praise for his defence after seeing them pick up their second clean sheet of this season’s Champions League.

“It was not an easy game. You could see that we were playing a more experienced team. You could see that their players are exposed (to higher standards), they have experience and the pitch didn’t give us that rhythm that we were looking for. It was a good game. It was a game of two halves. Our visitors controlled the first half and we controlled the second half. I’m taking my hat off for my defence. They were resolute at the back,” Vilakati said.